An Unexpected Reunion
by stingrae90
Summary: You can imprison the body, not the mind. Hakoda's thoughts and feelings following his imprisonment after the failed invasion all the way through to his rescue. Prior knowledge of Season 3 episodes 10 to 15 highly recommended.
1. And So It Begins

A/N: Two points, before you go read, if you'll indulge me that long. This is something of an experiment in writing styles for me. (Isn't it just amazing what discomfort writers put themselves through to improve their skills?) It's told entirely from Hakoda's POV, which is new to me in two ways. One, the POV through which I'm telling the story. Every story previously has been 3rd person. Now I'm writing in 1st, for this story, anyway. Second, I've had to do a lot of thinking about a character I've always liked, but never wrote about before. I've had to get into his head, and it's been a fun journey.

My second point, is that this story has been completely finished. I will post a chapter a week, probably on Wednesdays. I don't know why Wednesdays. I think I just like the middle of the week, for some reason. Give people a pick-me-up or something...And, I guess this is a third point, all props go to my beta, Caelum Blue, who kindly indulged my desire to get this fic done before she leaves on vacation for a month, and thus was beta-ing a chapter every other day or so, along with vacation preparations. (I know you said work that is fun isn't really work, and I agree, but still...it was a lot!)

Disclaimer: I don't own anything but my idea. Not even the plot this time! Though any scenes you recognize as being expanded from time gaps in the episode, those are mine!

--

I stood on the small trail circling the side of the cliff, and watched my children leave me once again. I had thought, after they left to follow the Avatar a few weeks ago, I would never have to stand back and let them face the world on their own again.

I was wrong.

And it hurt, watching them leave, still feeling the lingering warmth from their farewell hugs, and knowing they were both hurting because of this defeat. Someone had betrayed us to the Fire Nation. They had been forewarned, enough so that the Fire Lord had been nowhere to be found, even when my children and the others had found the underground bunker.

All that planning, all of Sokka's plans, gone to waste. How could I just calmly surrender now? My family had been hurt, had been devastated, by the Fire Nation before, and now it continued, would continue, without a feasible end in sight.

How could I…

"Hakoda, they will fight on for us."

I turned my head slightly, noting that Bato had come up behind me. His serious gaze held compassion for my plight, and understanding of my anger. Sokka and Katara were as close to children as he would ever have. The woman he had planned to marry had died in a raid that occurred some two years before the one that had killed my Kya. We had all needed support then and so I had encouraged them to treat him as an uncle since they were little. It hurt him just as much, to see them fly away from us.

I pulled in a deep breath, reworking my thoughts to the appropriate mindset for what I now had to do. Our troops knew we couldn't win this, but I couldn't let them surrender without hope. I looked around until I spotted one of the Earthbenders and motioned him over. I thought he was the father of one of the children that had left with my son and daughter, but couldn't say for sure, since I hadn't been paying attention to anyone other than my children.

"Can you make me a platform? All the troops need to see me."

"You think that is wise?" he asked skeptically. I laughed bitterly.

"We will be taken captive soon anyway. I will not let our troops go without some form of hope. If we don't do this now, we won't get another chance."

"I can give you a brace as well, if you need it to stand straight." The man offered. I smiled gratefully at him, and nodded. Likely I would fall off the platform half-way through my speech without some form of support.

The man left and a moment later I had a platform raising me above head level, subtle supports worked in to keep me upright, and strategically placed shields further up the mountain to keep off the continuing barrage of missiles and fire from the regrouping Fire Nation soldiers.

Word had spread that I was going to give another speech, and similar arrangements had been worked out for the groups farther from our own. Earthbenders had raised shields to get the farthest close enough to hear, and now the entirety of our troops huddled in one mostly compact group. I felt my heart constrict a bit at the image of my warriors helping Earth Kingdom soldiers to their feet, of Earth Kingdom soldiers keeping some of the people from the Northern Air temple on their own feet.

Why had it taken an invasion to make us all work together? Why had it taken a hundred years of war to make us see how similar we all were to each other?

"You all fought well! We struck a blow against the Fire Nation's pride today! Never again will they believe themselves invincible, invulnerable against attack in their own nation. In their own capital!"

I had to pause a moment as the men and women gathered around me cheered – and to me the cheers seemed more a roar of defiance at the oncoming soldiers - at the one bright point they had to this day.

"So while we did not defeat the Fire Nation today, we still have hope. The Avatar will still be out there, finding another way to end this war. He has with him representatives from both of our nations! The Earth Kingdom," I had to pause again as approving calls interrupted me again. "The Water Tribe!" My own warriors hooted and hollered, and I noticed even Bato had a small smile appearing around his mouth.

But all the cheers were short-lived. Cut off by the ever-closer missiles of the Fire Nation. I braced myself, trying to ignore the way the earthen barriers shielding me were shifting to accommodate different angles of attack. If I was struck, I was struck and there was nothing I could do about that.

"The Avatar will not let our sacrifice today, our hard-work, be in vain! He will fight on, as will those who went with him, and so must we continue to hold our hope, our resolve, that this war will end and the Fire Nation will be brought down! Do not give up in the coming days, my friends, for we have proven today that the Fire Nation is not invulnerable!"

This time there were no cheers greeting my words, but there was a sort of acceptance crossing every face I could see. These people had known what might happen when they had agreed to come and take part in this invasion. And now they had something to hold onto during the hard times that were surely coming for us.

My platform was lowered and Bato and the Earthbender – I now recalled his name was Tyro - helped me down, I leaned heavily on them, my strength fast slipping from the exertion of maintaining a calm façade in front of the other troops.

"They'll hold, Hakoda," Bato told me quietly and Tyro, on my other side, nodded in agreement.

"You gave them hope," The man's green eyes smiled at me, while his face was serious. "Just like your daughter gave it to me and the other Earthbenders of my village."

"She did?" I hadn't heard much of this story. Just that Katara had refused to leave behind a boy she had accidentally gotten arrested for earthbending.

"She did. You taught her well."

I could only smile faintly, thinking that it hadn't been me, but my wife, who had taught Katara so much. The two had been inseparable while my wife was still alive, and Kya had been the one to teach her most of what she knew. Whatever Katara had gotten from me, I knew Kya had given her so much more.

And then there was no more time for memories, as the Fire Nation troops had arrived at last, and I pushed my supporters away to stand proud like a proper Water Tribe warrior and leader as we were all taken prisoner.

--

I looked around the small prison I'd be spending the foreseeable future in as I was roughly guided through the front gates. There wasn't much to recommend it. It was obvious that this prison hadn't ever seen so much use in all its existence. There were hastily reinforced defenses and newly repaired guard towers everywhere I could see.

It was almost insulting, that the Fire Nation believed my troops would be so easily contained. But I knew, just as my troops knew, that we would cause as little trouble as possible.

Oh, we wouldn't bend over backwards to please the guards and the warden, but neither would we deliberately instigate conflicts. Even should any of us win free of the prison, there was no where for the escapee to go afterwards. Where would a Water Tribe warrior hide in the Fire Nation? An Earth Kingdom soldier?

No, we didn't have a clear enough escape path, and so we would wait. We would hold our trust in the Avatar and the children…the young men and women who had gone with him.

They weren't children anymore. They couldn't be, not after everything this war had put all of them through. I was sure my children weren't the only ones who had lost their mother to the war. I was sure those other young people carried their own scars, maybe not as obvious as the Mechanist's son's legs, but they were there.

My contemplations were cut short as a strident, slightly nasal voice shouted nearly in my ear.

"Look at me when I talk to you, Water Tribe scum!"

I glanced to the side just enough to determine it was the warden who had noticed my lack of interest in his 'welcome speech' and returned my gaze to the far wall. I refused to look this man in the eye.

"I said look at me!!"

I heard a few of my warriors snickering from their own places in the line-up, and despite my desire to see none of them antagonize the guards, felt a smirk beginning on my face.

My warriors knew what I was doing, and warden had no clue I was insulting him. That only made it all the more funny for my men.

In the Water Tribe, you only met the eyes of those you respected. You only gave the honor of a direct gaze to those whose achievements you acknowledged, or whose authority you respected.

I could apply none of those categories to this man, had no desire to apply them to this man, or anyone from the Fire Nation.

A stinging smack sent me reeling for balance, but I steadied myself without much trouble – a strong wind could cause our war ships to rock more than that slap had done to me – and shook my head slightly at my men and the other troops who stood with me, hearing their growls at the treatment I received.

"Too ashamed to look a true soldier in the eye, Water Tribe?"

I couldn't help smirking, even as I continued to stare at the far wall of the prison yard. I spoke firmly, but without shouting, as seemed to be the warden's habit.

"Perhaps it is not my pride that has been damaged, warden."

That earned a punch to the side of my head. I saw it coming out of the corner of my eye, and managed to twist enough that it was a glancing blow, instead of the brutal punch he obviously meant it to be.

"Not much of a soldier, is the warden?"

I didn't recognize the voice, and it was too low for me to discern who among my fellow prisoners had spoken. Which was fortunate, since neither could the warden.

"Who said that!?!"

Silence.

I barely managed to keep myself from sighing. Did he really expect the mutterer to speak up? Surely he couldn't be that stupid.

"I command you to tell me!"

Then again, maybe he could.

Of course, no one spoke up, and I saw lips curling among my warriors and the Earth Kingdom soldiers alike. None of us thought much of this man, so obviously insecure with his new position of authority and status. I doubt he'd had much more than a few petty thieves to bully before now.

"Get these scum out of my sight!"

As I was led away to my cell, I couldn't help the smirk that crossed my lips.

Water Tribe and Earth Kingdom 'scum': 1

Fire Nation Warden and Guards: 0

--


	2. Prison Yard Interludes

A/N: Part of the reason I had so much fun with this fic is because I got to expand on the Kyoshi Warriors. Hakoda mentions meeting them before he was transferred to the Boiling Rock, so, of course, I had to include that meeting!

--

**Chapter 2: Prison Yard Interludes**

--

I tried not to let my stiffness show as I leaned against one of the barrack walls in the prison yard. We'd been deemed worthy of the daily hour of 'free air' after nearly a week in our tiny eight by five cells. Although my wound had mostly healed – and I counted that mostly to my daughter's hasty healing during the battle; I'd surely have an infection by now if she hadn't healed it somewhat – I was sore and stiff. And with no way to really exercise in my cell, I'd had to rely on the few stretches I could do without aggravating my side.

Needless to say, they hadn't done much more than remind me how tender my side still was.

"How is it?"

I glanced to the side, and was not surprised to see Bato standing there. There was some type of mirth hiding behind the concern he outwardly showed that intrigued me. What had he found in this prison to amuse him? He would tell me in time, so I answered his spoken question.

"Stiff. Katara did as much as she could on the battlefield, and it's mostly healed by now."

"That's good. We're not likely to get medical care of any kind here. Not for war prisoners." He sneered as he spoke the last and I grinned.

"Take it as a compliment. They know anyone they heal will just have all that much more energy to be a nuisance, and one more escape risk."

Bato snorted, but I could see the mirth double behind his outward pessimism.

"But that's not what you really wanted to talk to me about," I stated baldly. I held little patience these days, even for my friend. If he had found something amusing, I wanted him to share it. Spirits knew we all needed a laugh.

"If you can walk without wincing," he commented scathingly and I grinned rakishly at the challenge, "follow me and I'll show you."

--

I don't know what I had been expecting when Bato had led me to the other side of the yard, but five young women who started giggling and laughing the minute they saw me was not it.

"Bato…?" I murmured quietly, somewhat disconcerted at being the object of such mirth, and even more so since I saw nothing that was so amusing. Bato simply grinned at me.

"Now, ladies, you're confusing him."

One of the young women swallowed her laughter and turned to the others, her face stern.

"Bato is correct. We are being unfair. Control yourselves, girls."

"But it's just…!" One of the other young women started, before she had to stuff part of her prison sleeve in her mouth in an attempt to stifle her laughter. Clear blue eyes, not quite Water Tribe blue, but close, turned to regard me, as the first young woman bowed politely to me.

"My name is Taliba, Chief Hakoda of the Southern Water Tribe," she said, and as she rose from her bow, her eyes glinted wickedly at me. "This is Sauda." A wave took in the girl who was still attempting to get her laughter under control. The others had reduced their giggles to broad grins. She expanded her wave, pointing to the other young women in turn. "Huan, Subira, and Rajani."

I nodded at each of the young women, still not sure of what to make of them. Taliba ended by propping her fists on her hips and grinned cockily at me.

"We are the Kyoshi Warriors."

Some sort of recognition of the name sparked in my brain. I'd heard it somewhere before. It recalled to my mind the image of my children, Sokka red in the face from embarrassment, Katara grinning with amusement as she teased her brother…

Oh. So that was what they found so funny.

"I am pleased to meet you, Taliba of the Kyoshi Warriors." I matched her formality, letting my good humor show in my gaze, while I kept my face serious. Taliba's grin just got wider.

"Somehow, I can't imagine you letting us talk you into a traditional Kyoshi Warrior's gear."

Bato started snickering then, and I simply elbowed him in the ribs, not the least perturbed.

"Sokka has always been willing to try anything that would improve his skills as a warrior."

Taliba's expression, and the expressions of her warriors, abruptly shifted to one of respect.

"He knows how not to let his pride get in the way of learning more. I can only imagine he learned from his father." She bowed again and I could find no response other than to bow in reply. I had taught Sokka to respect other warriors, but I had never imagined he'd taken me so seriously as to lay aside the pride and embarrassment any teenage boy would feel at being made to wear a _dress_ just to learn a few new moves.

I couldn't help but feel proud of him. He'd grown so much since that day I'd left him standing outside the village, dressed up as a warrior and begging to go with me, to go with the other Water Tribe warriors. He was a warrior now, and while I wished I could have seen him make the journey, I could not be prouder of his accomplishments.

We spent the rest of our allowed time in the yard speaking of my son, and I savored those few moments when the war faded to the background and all of us, Kyoshi and Water Tribe warriors alike, remembered happier times and shared treasured memories.

--

"Get rid of it!" I hissed at Rajani, stepping slightly to the side to shield her and her make-shift statue from the guard's view as he walked past, glaring the laughter of my fellow prisoners silent. We could not let him see how Rajani had worked up an imitation of the warden from the random rocks that scattered the yard. It was eerily accurate, for a likeness done with pebbles and slightly larger stones.

I had not expected a guard to walk past our section of the yard so soon. Nor had my companions, by the looks on their faces. Perhaps we had been just a bit too loud in our appreciation of Rajani's creative talents. As soon as the guard had passed beyond hearing range, Bato spoke up.

"Are you sure you're not an Earthbender? I'm positive those rocks shouldn't have stayed like that for so long. They should have fallen the moment you let go."

"She's not an Earthbender," Taliba answered, lowering her hand, which had been hiding her grin. "Though her brother is. Perhaps he taught her some tricks for a non-bender?"

Rajani tossed an arched glance her leader's way as her hands cleared the incriminating evidence away. "As if you wouldn't know already, Tali?"

"I don't know everything," Taliba said loftily. "Just-"

"Most things," chorused the rest of the Kyoshi Warriors. Taliba only grinned at them.

Bato and I exchanged glances. We had already discovered how vast Taliba's knowledge was on all things. Her claim to know 'most things' probably was not an exaggeration. She had told both of us early on to be wary of the warden.

"_He's only just recently gained his position. He was the warden of some tiny prison not far from here, but the previous warden for our prison managed to make himself unpopular with the Fire Lord. Thus our new friend the warden was promoted. He's quite beside himself with excitement." Taliba rolled her eyes. "He wants to prove himself badly. Don't cross him if at all possible. He'd probably have you killed and blame it on a prison riot, and no one in the Fire Nation will question it if a war prisoner dies under suspicious circumstances."_

I had asked her how she had known that, since she had been sent here as a prisoner after the new warden was installed, and she just smiled at me and told me a girl had to have her secrets.

If this girl was second-in-command of the Kyoshi Warriors, I could only imagine what hidden talents their commander possessed.

The young women's banter filled the rest of our time in the yard, and then we were forced back to our cells once again.

--

Kekoa fell backwards, bleeding from the lip, and I clenched my fists by my sides, fighting with all my might from leaping to the aid of my fallen comrade.

"You'll show respect to the warden, Water Tribe scum. Or I'll-"

"Or you'll what? Hit me again?"

I reacted before the entirety of the scene had processed in my brain. I was between my warrior and the guard before the next blow had fallen, my arm held parallel to the ground to fend the blow that would have caused severe damage to my head if it had connected.

"What do you think you're doing?!"

I kept my face calm. I could sense Bato and the other Water Tribe warriors moving in behind me, shielding Kekoa and dragging the angry man away.

"I protect my men," I said evenly. "Whatever you meant to punish Kekoa for, do to me instead. He is under my command."

"Hakoda!"

I could hear Kekoa's protest clearly above the sudden hush of the gathered prisoners. The next sound I heard was a grunt and I barely kept the smirk from my face. Kekoa's brother, Keanu, had little patience for his brother's often hot-headed temper, and had no qualms about showing it. Likely Keanu had just elbowed Kekoa. Or smacked him upside the head.

Which was the least of his worries, after I was done dealing with this guard. I had specifically ordered all of my men to avoid conflicts with the guards and warden.

"Well, let's just see how long you hold that defiant attitude in our 'special' cell. Take him!"

Oh, yeah. I was going to read the riot act to Kekoa. Though judging from the look on Bato's face as I was dragged off, I wouldn't have much left to do.

--

"I ordered all of you to avoid conflicts with the guards. No one was to do _anything_ to deliberately provoke them."

"I didn't start it, Hakoda, I promise!"

I restrained the urge to drop my head into my hands and sigh heavily. Sometimes I thought it might have been wiser to leave the younger men with the tribe when we had first left. Though I thought this sort of hot-headed action had long been forced out of my warriors.

"Maybe not, but you provoked him once it was started. Which still breaks the order I gave you. Or are you no longer a Water Tribe warrior, Kekoa? We protect each other, through our actions and words. Your actions and words yesterday could have put all of us into danger, Kekoa. You might have gotten someone killed." I left out the fact that I would have been the first one who died at the hands of an enraged prison guard, and left out as well the simple fact that my other warriors would not have stood hopelessly aside and let it happen.

Red flooded the younger man's face and I knew I'd finally made my point. Bato had already rammed home the fact that Kekoa could have gotten more than just himself in trouble with his actions of the previous day. But I had felt the need to reinforce that lesson, to make sure nothing of this sort ever happened again.

"I'm sorry, Chief." Kekoa couldn't meet my gaze as he shifted uncomfortably. "I won't do it again."

I merely nodded solemnly, not in the mood to be so forgiving so easily. That 'special' cell they had locked me into had been _small_ – I thought a storage chest might be a more suitable name for the place - and had only aggravated the still healing wound in my side, since I hadn't been able to avoid having it rammed into the wall.

--

"What's going on?" I whispered to Bato as we met up in the yard. There was an unusual amount of activity originating from the building we knew housed the warden's office. There were soldiers rushing in and out, bearing scrolls and various other items bound for destinations we could only guess.

"The warden got orders about a prisoner transfer early this morning."

The quiet voice with that subtle undercurrent of sly knowing could only be Taliba. I turned my head to see the young woman regarding the activity with trepidation. It seemed her knowledge on this matter wasn't as complete as she would like it to be, and it bothered her.

Strangely, the fact that Taliba didn't know as much as she usually did made me feel better. It was as if the spirits were reminding all of us that they still held a stake in this and weren't about to let mere mortals interfere with what they wanted to happen.

Though if the Fire Nation winning this war was what they desired, suddenly I wasn't so happy that Taliba didn't know more of this strange activity.

Why would a prisoner transfer cause such a stir?

--

"Why do they keep staring at me?" I demanded of Bato and Taliba, who were leaning on the wall of the barracks on either side of me.

"They think you're handsome?" Taliba inquired, her bantering tone covering the fact that the unrelenting stares and few not-so-subtle side-long looks were getting to her as well.

"You're a little young for me, Taliba," I told her wryly. Anything to get some humor out of this situation. Bato choked on air beside me, and I slipped easily out of grabbing range as he tried to get his hands around my throat. Taliba just laughed and I joined her, grinning at my outraged second-in-command.

Whose expression abruptly shifted from outraged horror to warning, his eyes flickering as Taliba also sobered quickly. I turned, not surprised to find the warden behind me.

"Laugh while you can, Water Tribe." Must the man call me that? He knew my name, I know he did. Maybe I ought to start calling him Fire Nation, see how he liked it. I was proud of my heritage, but it disgusted me to hear it turned into an insult. "You won't get the chance at your new 'home.'" He snickered, as if he had made some vastly amusing joke. I cocked an eyebrow at him, not impressed. The warden's laughter abruptly ceased, as he realized I wasn't exactly cowering in fear of his petty threat. "You're being transferred to the Boiling Rock."

That was supposed to impress me? The only thing it did was make me worry for my men, and for Taliba and the other Kyoshi Warriors, since apparently I wouldn't be here to protect them anymore.

"I see," I stated blandly, none of my reaction showing on my face. Mother was a more formidable opponent in mind games than this man. Mother could make a seasoned warrior cower before the mere suggestion of her wrath. This man had a long way to go if he expected Kanna's son to be intimidated by his vague threats.

The warden's face was turning a shade red somewhat reminiscent of a particularly flamboyant fish common in the waters of Chameleon Bay. I wondered briefly what other colors I could make it turn.

"The Boiling Rock is the Fire Nation's most secure prison, Water Tribe," he hissed venomously. "It's located in the middle of a volcano, in the middle of a boiling lake heated by the magma that flows just under the surface."

If he was trying to intimidate me by making me fear being incinerated by a volcano eruption in my sleep, he was failing at that too. Badly. Why would the Fire Nation risk their own soldiers in a prison that wasn't secured against such a danger?

Then again, they hadn't exactly shown much honor in anything else, why should this be any different?

Though it still failed to intimidate me any. My children had escaped before any of my troops had been taken captive. So long as they lived, I didn't care what happened to me.

The warden's face was now turning an amusing shade of purple. I started to contemplate escape routes, in case the man spontaneously combusted from all the blood rushing to his head. Was there any even left in the rest of his body? It all seemed determined to take up permanent residence in his face.

"Take him to the transport!" he finally snapped. "And take those two back to their cells! Keep them confined until I order otherwise!" Bato and Taliba both cast reassuring glances my way, but I hardly noticed them. Taking out his inability to frighten me on my friends and companions was an insult I was dearly wishing to repay.

But as they were taken away and the guards shackled my hands behind my back, I knew I could not take any action against this man, despite the many insults I had endured from him since I had arrived here. Both from this man and from his soldiers. I would only worsen the conditions of my warriors, my troops.

Bato would protect them as well as he could, and Keanu – who unlike his brother was wise beyond his years - would take up the slack until Bato was released from his confinement.

I could only hope that Subira would do as well with the Kyoshi Warriors while Taliba was confined.

None of them, Water Tribe and Kyoshi Warrior alike, took insults well. Especially not when they had been denied any chance at retaliation for so long.

--

A/N2: Bonus points to anyone who can tell me why Taliba's name is so appropriate. And, just for those who are curious, the ranking within the Kyoshi Warriors is as following: Suki, Taliba, Subira, Huan, Rajani, Sauda. I'm wondering if any of you can figure out how I determined their rankings. Here's a hint, http:// iroh (dot) org (slash) screencaps (slash) ep36 (slash) ep36 (dash) 578 (dot) png and http: // iroh (dot) org (slash) screencaps (slash) ep36 (slash) ep36 (dash) 594 (dot) png are the only things I used to determine ranking. Just replace the parenthesis with the symbol they represent. (Note to self, not allowed to put links in my author's notes) They're screenshots from the Season 2 episode, Appa's Lost Days. I'll be interested to see if any of you can pinpoint how I did it! So tell me in your reviews, please!!


	3. The Journey

A/N: We're working up to my favorite part of The Boiling Rock, Part 2. Hakoda's face off with the warden. But of course there had to be a reason, or reasons, why Hakoda was so willing to antagonize the Warden. This chapter gives you the reasons. I think it was my favorite to write, bar one of my later chapters. Anyway, go read and then tell me what you think!

--

I kept my face blank as the obnoxious guard walked by again, sneering at me. I was determined not to react to his taunts. He'd been trying to get a reaction out of me ever since he'd learned I had led the invasion force against the Fire Nation capital. Likely he wanted any excuse he could find to strike me.

"Not such a great leader now, are you? None of your pitiful warriors are here to back you now."

Pitiful warriors. Right. Pitiful warriors that had nearly succeeded in taking the Fire Nation capital.

"What's the matter? Afraid of talking to a real warrior, Water Tribe?"

I couldn't help the furrowing of my brows at the reemergence of the hated nickname. It seemed to be following me from that first prison. I didn't know if my previous warden had somehow passed it along, or if it was just that the Fire Nation officers all thought alike.

I didn't much care. I just hated hearing my heritage turned into an insult.

"I can see you don't like me. Why don't you do something about it?" The guard circled around me, coming temptingly close. I could imagine so very clearly the yelp he'd make if I slammed the manacles holding my hands together into his head.

But I wouldn't. That would be sinking to his level. I will never do that.

"Too afraid, Wat-"

"What do you think you're doing?!"

I couldn't help it. I smirked. The guard had jumped nearly half his height in the air at the shout, and lost all the color in his face. Much as I despised all the Fire Nation, I felt grateful to this captain. He wasn't as bad as the others. Which still landed him squarely in the category of enemy, but not quite as bad as the rest of his companions.

"I was just…um, Captain, I can explain, really…"

Arms crossed over his chest, the captain waited, glaring at his subordinate. I bit my lip to keep from snickering at my tormentor's predicament.

"It's just…he's an enemy…" The man's eyes lit up and I could tell he had something he thought would justify all of his behavior. "Captain, you know as well as I do that this man led the forces that invaded the capital! It's an outrage!"

"And he's being punished for it. What can you possibly do to him that's worse than being sent to the Boiling Rock? He'll have no chance of escape in there."

"We can't just let him-"

"He'll pay for his arrogance in attacking the Fire Nation. He is paying, right now. He'll live out the rest of his life in the Boiling Rock. So either find something else to do, or I'll find something for you to do."

The annoying guard mumbled something I didn't catch and left after saluting his superior officer. The captain waited until he was out of ear-shot, then addressed me.

"I may not have let him continue his childish taunting," he warned me, his eyes cold. "But that doesn't mean he wasn't right." He glared hard at me, and I stared right back. I would not let this man intimidate me. "You will die in the Boiling Rock. And I can only hope your death comes sooner rather than later."

With that last parting venom, he turned on his heel, and stalked away. I watched him go, feeling the anger that had subsided with the departure and humiliation of the obnoxious guard resurface.

He was slightly better than his comrades, but as far as I was concerned, it still didn't count for much.

--

"They've been saying he's the one who led the attack on the capital."

"Are you sure? I mean, yeah, I can see he's a warrior. He moves like one."

"We're transferring the leader of the attack to the Boiling Rock. Everyone's saying the leader was a Water Tribesman. He's got to be it."

"Well…he is the only Water Tribesman we've got."

"Exactly."

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. I'd found during the years I'd been fighting the Fire Nation that the regular soldiers tended to judge how good an opposing warrior was based on which Fire Nation battalion they had taken down or wounded. And not many had ever been significantly harmed, disregarding the decimation of General Iroh's troops at Ba Sing Se. They held such an inflated idea of the importance and imperviousness of their nation, and their capital, that likely they had been expecting me to look like some sort of monster. Or maybe like a bull-moose-lion.

"Okay, so he's the leader. Who planned the attack?" I glanced sharply at the guard who had spoken. Did anyone know it was Sokka who had planned the assault? "I mean," the guard was whispering near-soundlessly now, and I had to strain to hear him. "That attack almost succeeded."

"Shush! Do you want us to get into trouble? No one's supposed to talk about that! We beat them, that's all that matters."

It didn't sound like they knew. I silently urged them to continue their conversation, wanting to hear some definitive answer on the danger my son was in. Granted, he was already a declared enemy of the Fire Nation, just by being a companion of the Avatar, but the Fire Nation bounty on his head would rise if they knew he had planned the assault that had so wounded the Fire Nation's pride.

"I know that!" I had nearly stopped breathing at this point. They were speaking so softly I had to hold my breath to hear the words. "But just think…if the tactician who planned it escaped…"

The nervous guard glanced furtively around, as if checking for eavesdroppers. I quickly slumped my shoulders and stared at the ground in front of me, praying I looked as dejected as they thought a prisoner on his way to the Boiling Rock should be.

Apparently it worked. They resumed their conversation and I held my breath once again.

"I think the guy did escape, though. No one's said anything about the guy that planned it being captured. If he was, he'd have been sent straight to the Boiling Rock, that's if he survived the anger of Fire Lord Ozai."

"Yeah, wouldn't take a bet on the chances of that happening…"

I let out my breath in a slow sigh. No one knew who had planned the attack then. So long as no Fire Nation official found out my son had been the mastermind behind the assault, he would be as safe as he could be until this war ended.

It was one less thing for the Fire Nation to pin on his head as a reason for capture, and one less thing for me to worry about.

"Though I heard that Princess Azula's got an idea who might have planned the invasion."

My heart skipped at least a two beats. Maybe more. No. Sokka could not be found out. Spirits no. Don't let them find out. What would they do to him if they did? The guards seemed to think Sokka wouldn't survive it, whatever punishment Ozai came up with. And the stories I'd heard about Princess Azula…well, suffice to say that apple hadn't fallen far from the tree.

"Really? Do you know who she thinks-"

"Shut up! The captain's coming this way!"

My hands curled into fists. No, no, just whisper it really quickly. Please, I just need to know. Spirits, if Princess Azula knew Sokka had planned…

Tui and La, protect my son while I am not able.

--

"Enjoy the last leg of your journey! It's been a pleasure showing you the finer points of travel through the Fire Nation! This last stop is one of our luxury prisons, where you'll all be set up with the _best _of accommodations!" The guard broke off into snorts and sniggers and his fellows grinned as they prodded me and my fellow prisoners off the airship that had transported us on this last leg of the journey to the Boiling Rock. I gritted my teeth and glared at the back of the guard in front of me. I could almost imagine some malevolent spirit had deliberately picked the most obnoxious and arrogant guards to transfer my fellow prisoners and me to the Boiling Rock.

This particular guard, a large hulking man who moved quickly enough to defy normal expectations, seemed to take a perverted sort of pleasure out of treating a prison transfer as some sort of twisted vacation for the prisoners.

I dearly wanted to punch him. He'd been grating on my nerves for the past twenty-four hours and I was reaching my breaking point.

As the door on the gondola closed, I turned my head to watch the airship take off again. It would seem that the warden at my first prison had been correct to be proud of the Boiling Rock. It would require a miracle to escape from here.

The Boiling Rock was situated on an island, not all that far from the capital itself. The cliffs gave way on either side to steep drop-offs, leading on the one side to the ocean and on the other to the boiling lake which had given this place its name. I thought I caught a glimpse of pathways winding down the cliffs, but the gondola had started moving by that point, and I was denied a closer look. The steam rose off the lake below and nearly masked the small protrusion of rock that housed the prison in the middle of the lake. I squinted at it, and soon gave it up as a futile exercise. I couldn't see enough to make a good assessment of its fortifications, and besides, how would I get off the island, even if I did escape, without a boat or an airship?

My mind turned instead to thoughts of my children.

_It's been over a week since the invasion. Sokka will have stopped sulking by now, and started concentrating on another plan. He can't risk another direct assault, especially not with most of our troops captured during the eclipse. So…he'll be trying to figure out a way to find a firebending teacher for the Avatar._

I thought over that for a moment, and was not encouraged by the prospects.

_A deserter they already tried, and if I remember right, it didn't work so well. Besides, they don't even know where the guy went. Not likely they can find him again, even if he'd consent to teach Aang. But neither can they just kidnap a bender and force him or her to teach the Avatar._

I was briefly amused with thoughts of how my son might encourage a kidnapped firebender to betray his nation by teaching the Avatar the last element he needed to master, but soon reality drew me back from the pleasant images.

_I can't see a way for Aang to learn firebending, not while we're still at war with the Fire Nation._ I stared intently at the floor in front of me, ignoring the other prisoners on either side of me and the guard pacing up and down the middle of the gondola. _Can he defeat Ozai without knowing firebending? Is there a way?_

I couldn't think of one. But Sokka was resourceful. I just had to trust him. And Katara wouldn't let him run off and do anything stupid.

Katara.

She'd grown so much since I'd last seen her, a twelve-year-old determined to hide her tears and not quite managing it, but denying that she was crying all the same. That farewell differed so much from the one we had shared in the Fire Nation capital.

We'd had time to properly say farewell, two years ago, for one.

And she hadn't cried. No. She'd been angry, and disappointed that we had failed. And scared that she would never see me again. She knew as well as I did what fate had waited for me after the Fire Nation troops caught up with me and the rest of the troops.

She'd grown so much since that day, since I'd left her, supposedly safe from the war, back in the South Pole.

Brilliant plan, Hakoda. Leave her back home, where she ought to be safe, and she runs headlong into this war anyway. You knew she would never be content there; she's just like her grandmother. No one can hope to dictate her life to her without it backfiring on them.

Which, in a way, I had tried to do, by leaving her behind. I had arrogantly assumed that the Southern Water Tribe was too small to ever be worth attacking by the Fire Nation. My little girl would be safe there, I had thought. No matter how much my men and I angered the Fire Nation.

So, of course, that's where the Avatar reappears after a hundred year absence, and that's exactly where Fire Prince Zuko was searching to try to find the Avatar.

And the confrontation that had followed had led to the necessary relocation of my tribe to another ice shelf, since Prince Zuko had rammed his ship into the one the tribe had been living on.

Did the Fire Nation have no respect for any other way of life than there own? Why couldn't they see that _different_ didn't mean _inferior, barbarian, stupid?_ Why couldn't they see that?

That blindness and arrogance was perhaps a national trait, and from the stories I had heard, the Royal Family certainly lived up to it. Along with being cruel and ruthless.

I could not wait for –

"Hey, you! Get off the gondola."

I squeezed my eyes shut for a moment, keeping my head down. Slowly, I stood, noticing the lack of swaying that meant we had reached the prison for the first time.

Straightening my back and lifting my head, I stepped off the gondola to face whatever fate brought to me.


	4. Two Water Tribe Geniuses

A/N: Okay, we are now officially in the territory of TBR Part 2. This chapter and the next will cover the major parts of this episode. Enjoy and tell me what you guys think!

--

As I took my place at the end of the line of prisoners, I tried to calm myself. I knew without doubt that my patience would be tested here, and I could not afford to let my captors get to me.

"Welcome to the Boiling Rock."

I glanced up for the briefest of seconds, then refocused my gaze on the ground. The warden had arrived, it seemed, and was about to start his 'welcome' speech. I ignored it. They were all the same anyway.

I could sense the warden and his escort coming closer to my end of the line. He paused as he reached me, and spoke the last bit of his speech directly to me. I couldn't avoid hearing what he had to say.

"…as long as you do everything I say."

I sensed him take a small step forward, and I could imagine that he was attempting to get me to look him in the eye.

Not gonna happen, Warden. Why should I honor you when your entire nation refuses to honor mine? Or the Earth Kingdom, for that matter.

"Look me in the eye when I'm talking to you," he demanded of me, his head angling to get in a position to force the contact. I slid my glance aside, barely containing a sneer.

"No," I said firmly, my contempt coming though despite my best efforts.

"Oh? You'd rather look at my shoes?"

I didn't like that sound of that. What was he--

The next instant, my shackles had been caught underneath the warden's left foot and pinned to the ground, taking me with them. I folded into a kneeling position to save myself from leaving an imprint of my face on the stone of the walkway. I felt my anger, which I had succeeded in burying, rise again.

The warden's voice, when next he spoke, was low enough that only I could hear him.

"I know exactly who you are, Hakoda of the Water Tribe,"

Oh, so he knew my name and my nationality. Good for him. That didn't mean he knew me. My skin tone and hairstyle mark me as Water Tribe and knowing my name doesn't count for much. It just means he read that dispatch that informed him of new prisoners and their offenses. I highly doubt that file contained anything of real importance about me.

"So strong willed, but don't worry, we'll get rid of that in time."

Even less likely than him knowing something pertinent about who I really am.

"Now!" He practically ground out the next words. "Look me in the eye."

I seriously debated refusing him again. But the likely beating I would take wasn't worth it. I compromised.

I slowly raised my head, but I didn't hold back the glare of contempt and hatred I had been restraining ever since I had stepped off the gondola.

I have no idea of what he said after that, my entire being was focused on his movements.

No one treated a Water Tribe warrior like that and got away with it.

Just as the warden turned to continue his pacing, I lifted my left hand the small amount my shackles would allow, effectively sending the warden sprawling to the ground.

I smirked as I stood up again. Apparently the good warden didn't have reflexes as good as mine were. He'd been unable to avoid slamming face first to the stone floor.

_If you knew anything about me, Warden, _I said silently, _you'd have known I couldn't let an insult like that go unanswered._

--

I stood firmly with my back to my cell door, waiting until I heard the guards' footsteps fade before I walked to the small pallet on the floor and sank down onto it, my back to the wall.

I had really messed up. I shouldn't have responded to the Warden's jabs at me. I had to live out the rest of the war in this prison; it would not help if I made an obvious enemy of the warden. The fact that I didn't have to worry about retaliations on my men should not have influenced my control.

But it had. I didn't have to think about anyone other than myself now, and that knowledge…it had gone to my head a little. I hadn't recognized that on the walkway, but I could now. I was more willing to accept blows and beatings to get some of my own back from these Fire Nation scum then I was to let those who looked to me for guidance suffer the same.

And after all the lectures I had given my men about not rising to the bait, not retaliating…I was a hypocrite. My eyes were bleak as I stared at the metal door blocking my exit from this dismal cell. At least I was the only one here to know that fact. And I had time to work on fixing that flaw. After all, I'd be here a while and there would no doubt be plenty of guards to test my resolve.

My knees drew up to my chest and I circled my arms around them. It was depressing, but it was the truth. Until the war was won, this small cell, this prison, was my home. I had to make the best of the situation. My mind trailed back to the confrontation with the warden. At least I could have a small bit of amusement from his graceless fall, even if I had been a hypocrite by rising to his baiting.

_Bato would have thought the Warden's face-plant on the walkway was hilarious. I bet Tali would have…_

My thoughts trailed off and my head thunked down on my knees.

Bato and Tali weren't here. They were still back at that small prison outside the Fire Nation capital, probably still locked in their cells, if my old warden hadn't calmed down yet.

_Keanu, Subira…keep each other calm, and keep everyone out of trouble_, I silently pleaded with the two distant temporary leaders of the Kyoshi Warriors and my troops.

My arms tightened around my knees. I had not been without at least one or two of my men, fellow Water Tribesmen, since I had left the South Pole. And before that, the entire tribe was always willing to help a kinsman through tough spots, whether you were true kin or simply close friends. My mouth curled in a self-mocking smile.

I wasn't handling being on my own well. I'd let all those guards get to me on the way here, and the warden just a few minutes ago…

Was that the extent of my control? My self-discipline? Yes, the barbs had stung, and the Warden's insults had nearly begged to be repaid in kind, but even so… I feared it would be a nearly impossible task to learn to ignore the barbs that would come my way, not now that I had no one but myself to look after and answer too.

I longed to have Bato's steady presence beside me. I needed someone to ground me, to remind me I wasn't alone here, that I hadn't gone about the entire past two years of my life wrong. That, maybe, just maybe, it hadn't been my control that had slipped. It had just been the logical accumulation of silently born insults and jabs. That there really wasn't any other way I could have acted…

I needed to see another Water Tribe face, even someone I didn't know. There was a kinship in being of the same nation, and for now that would be enough.

The sliding sound of my cell door opening startled me out of my melancholy. I looked up to see a guard – _rather short, isn't he?_ observed a detached part of my brain – enter my cell and close the door behind him.

"Thank goodness you're okay."

The voice sounded rather young, but what threw me the most was the way the guard came forward, arms out to the side, as if he was going to embrace me. As if he actually cared that I was alright. That I wasn't injured.

I think not.

The surprise dropped from my face, replaced by grim anger. Maybe I should have cared that my actions might be deemed insubordinate, but I didn't. This insane competition the Fire Nation army seemed to be holding to 'be the most annoying guard' was going to stop. Now.

"If you take one step closer, you'll see just how 'okay' I am."

I was completely prepared to knock this guard back _through _the metal door to my cell. If that meant I was still a hypocrite for acting on my anger…well, so be it. I'd knock him through the door and be proud of it. I tensed in preparation, when the guard's next action stopped me.

He froze in his tracks and then lifted one hand to pull his helmet off to reveal his face. A face I knew almost as well as my own.

"Dad, it's me."

My battle-ready stance evaporated. I didn't care, in that moment, what Sokka was doing in the most notorious Fire Nation prison dressed as a guard. I didn't care, in that moment, that we could be discovered at any time.

All that mattered was holding my son close and reveling in the fact that he was _alive._ That the Fire Nation hadn't captured him, that he was with me again and I could hold him close for a moment and forget this entire debacle of the last few weeks had ever happened.

--

It had pained me to bring reality back to my son, but I had reminded him of where we were eventually. I had no idea how much time had passed.

"Someone might come looking for you," I told him softly. Sokka simply grinned a bit.

"Nah. See, since I'm not really a guard here, I'm not part of the roster. But everyone thinks I am, cause I'm here and in uniform and I walk like I have somewhere to be. So no one bothers me with things like that." He waved a nonchalant hand in the air, dismissing my caution. But I noticed he went to the door and peered through the slit to scan the corridor outside. I stifled a smile and sat against the wall.

But in brining the reality of our situation back to my son's mind, I had brought it back to my own.

_What is he doing here? So far as I know, the only one from the invasion they sent here was me. And since Sokka's impersonating a guard, I don't imagine they know who he really is._

_Did he come to break someone out? He mentioned something earlier…when I nearly punched him. "I ran into that problem earlier." That was it. Alright…who would he have cared enough about to rescue, that would have been sent to the Boiling Rock, of all places? He can't have known I was here._

But the possibility that it had been me he came to rescue weighed heavily on my mind. I had sent him away after the failed invasion to keep him safe, not to have him chase after me in a foolish attempt to save me.

"So, where's Bato? Where's everyone else from the invasion?"

Sokka's question brought me back to the present, and I certainly wasn't going to tell him Bato was locked up in a tiny cell in a rundown prison because the idiot warden couldn't get me to show fear of the Boiling Rock.

I told him what I could without lying to him. I saw his face fall and his shoulders tense.

Oh, that wouldn't do. I could read my son's emotions nearly as well as my own. He thought it was his fault that the invasion failed. I'd been afraid of that. Well, I might not be able to change his mind, but I could distract him a little bit.

"But before I left, I met some young women who said they knew you. The Oceanama Fighters?" I purposely mixed up the name, knowing he would correct me.

"You mean the Kyoshi Warriors?" The slow smile spreading on his face reassured me that I had succeeded in getting his mind to fix on something besides his supposed failure. I nodded, smiling. "Their leader Suki's here and she's gonna escape with us."

"_escape with us"_ That was a lovely phrase. I could only hope it was true. I wondered if I'd get to see what hidden talents Suki possessed as I had glimpsed Taliba's nearly endless store of knowledge.

Though Sokka's next words quickly stole the pleasant thoughts from my mind.

Prince Zuko? Here? This would be a problem. I couldn't imagine what would have drawn the uptight, newly honored (for supposedly killing the Avatar, what kind of sick mind thought that a good thing?) Fire Prince to a prison? Let alone the very one my son was attempting a prison break from.

"Actually, he's on our side now."

I nearly snorted in disbelief, but I had to give my son more credit than that. He had to know he couldn't trust any of the Fire Nation royalty.

Though, then again, this is the boy who thought going ice-fishing at the age of five, without parental supervision, without _telling_ anyone, was a good idea. Though it might have had something to do with that case of Midnight Sun Madness he had caught that year…

I settled for turning a skeptical look at my son. He returned it with a sardonic one of his own.

"I know, I had the same reaction!" Well, at least he had been suspicious initially. I was missing all the details here. "After all he's done, it was hard to trust him."

_That's one way of putting it, Sokka_, I thought wryly. Myself, I'd dearly like to have some one-on-one _discussion_ time with the kid. He needed someone to show him what respect and leadership was all about.

Which was why hearing my son profess that Prince Zuko had 'proven himself' and actually led Sokka here…well, it was a shock, to say the least. As was the odd expression on his face. He seemed…thankful? Happy? That Zuko had helped him to find me. Whatever he had done to prove himself must have been big.

I would have to trust Sokka's judgment on this. I moved the conversation on.

"So, do you have a plan?" Sokka's face fell. I listened as he explained briefly what had happened to sabotage his first plan to escape. He didn't believe there was another way out.

_He can't stay thinking like that or we'll all be caught. _I steeled myself against the terror of the danger my son would face in Fire Nation hands, especially if Princess Azula really did know who had planned the invasion. _We can do this, it just needs careful planning, such as can be done in a prison._

After getting him in a better frame of mind, I settled down to the business at hand. No matter what Sokka said, someone would notice if he was gone for too long.

"What did your first plan involve? We can build off of that."

"We were going to use one of the coolers," he caught my confused look and explained. "They're these containing pod things that keep cold in. The warden uses them to subdue firebenders." I nodded and Sokka went on. "The coolers have to keep heat out, too, if they keep the cold in, so we were gonna sail over the lake in one, in a blind spot between two of the guard towers. But it didn't work."

This would be where the other prisoners ruined the plan, I'd guess.

"Well, we can't use a cooler again, they'll be expecting that." I thought a minute, and felt a slow grin come across my face.

"Did you ever think about the gondola?"

"The gondola?" Sokka's face was astonished. "I did, but they'd just cut the line if we even got to it. It wouldn't work."

My grin got wider.

"They won't cut the line if we have a hostage."

"A hostage? But the warden wouldn't care about some random guard or prisoner, Dad. He-"

I interrupted. "Who said anything about a guard or prisoner? The warden can't order the lines cut if he _is _our hostage. And the guards wouldn't dare cut the line themselves while we have him."

Sokka stared at me for a moment in mute astonishment. I grinned at him, spreading my hands as if to say, _see? There was another way._

"Okay," he said slowly, his brow furrowing as he thought. "But we'll need a distraction…otherwise we won't ever get to the warden in the first place." I watched my son think, impressed he had skipped over asserting it couldn't be done, and gone right to the fine points of working out how it _could _be done. "What about…" he thought some more, mouth working silently for a few minutes. I took the time to think as well. Nothing was ever hurt by one more person looking for possibilities.

"A riot!" Sokka snapped his fingers in success. I blinked at him and cocked my head, inviting him to expand. "We – I mean I, let all the prisoners out in the yard. It will give us all a place to meet, since you, Suki and Zuko are all prisoners, and then we start the riot, grab the warden in the confusion, get to the gondola and escape."

It sounded rather daunting put like that, but Sokka didn't seem to notice. He was thinking again. I wondered what had happened to land the Fire Prince as a prisoner here, and decided I could ask later. For now, I was trusting Sokka's judgment of him.

"How do we get off the island though? Once we're out of the gondola?" He wondered out loud. I smiled encouragingly at him.

"Hostages are good for more things than just free passage, Sokka." I smirked as he looked up at me, confused. "I don't imagine that any fortress such as this doesn't have at least one way out that is known only to the warden. Of necessity, it would include a way off of the Boiling Rock."

"Oh."

We went over our plan once more, making sure we were both clear on what was to happen and setting a meeting time of one hour from now. Sokka would let all the prisoners out into the yard, we'd find each other, as near to the overlook from which the warden would no doubt come to observe the riot as we could get. When we had all met up, we'd start the riot, kidnap the warden, get over the lake in the gondola and work with what we had over there.

It wasn't perfect, but it would have to do.

After a last hug, we parted. Sokka checked the corridor for other guards, and once sure the coast was clear, left quickly.

_Just let this work, please, _I pleaded with any spirit who was listening. _Don't let my son be caught here._


	5. Improvisation

A/N: Alrighty, ladies and gentlemen, the event you have all been waiting for! The Great Escape!!! *ducks rotten vegetables* But seriously, Sokka and Hakoda's plan of escape is being set in motion this chapter, but now really...when does anything go according to plan? That just wouldn't be fun. (And if you didn't know they hit snags along the way, you are going to be massively spoiled for this episode anyway...) Well, I'm off to pick my sister up, give me some nice reviews for when I get back?

--

After Sokka left, I occupied myself with the few exercises I could do in my cell. It wasn't much bigger than my first cell had been, but I had more room to work with and I put it to good use. I stretched and ran through simple hand-to-hand combat routines. I spent nearly a half-hour at this, then sat in a lotus position to meditate and calm my mind.

The physical was only half the battle, after all. A warrior could be undone by his mental state or thoughts just as quickly as by an enemy's blade.

The next thirty minutes passed for me, with agonizing slowness, but I forced myself to focus on my breathing; the steady in and out that kept a warrior alive. I made sure I remembered every part of our escape plan and did not let any doubts enter my mind.

Or I tried to. It was difficult, considering the obstacles we had to overcome to successfully escape.

Fortunately for me, the door to my cell slid open at that exact moment, and from the noise I judged all the other cells had been opened as well.

I stood and watched other prisoners run past my opened door to stairs leading down to the ground floor. As I moved to the doorway, I saw other prisoners exiting the cell block through doors on the ground level. I made my way down with the others, looking for my son or Suki as I went.

I suppose I should be looking for Prince Zuko as well, since I had decided to trust Sokka's judgment of him.

I spotted Suki first. Really, there was no one else she could be. A young woman, perhaps just the slightest bit older than Tali, with short brown hair and blue-gray eyes that scanned the crowd of prisoners and guards with a focused control no one her age should be able to achieve so easily. Her eyes lit as she spotted someone, and as I made my way towards her, I spotted the same person she had.

Sokka, Suki and I met up at nearly the same moment in a relatively clear area of the yard. I didn't see any sign of the Fire Nation prince. And apparently my son wasn't worried about his absence, as he got right down to business.

"This is it. We have to start a riot."

Suki propped her fists on her hips. "Okay, how do we do that?" She looked more than ready to knock a few heads in if it helped. I hid a grin as Sokka scanned the yard as if hoping for an opportunity to present itself out of thin air.

I knew how to start one, I'd seen enough brawls initiated along the docks my warriors and I had put in at to know what to look for and what to do. All I needed was…Ah, right there.

A tall, well-muscled man, with a rough look about him stood some twenty feet away, with his back turned to me. I smirked and started walking towards him.

"I'll show you," I told my son and Suki.

Taking it slow at first, so as not to attract any attention from guards who would stop me before the all important riot was started, I carefully stalked my target. Once I was close enough, I broke into a light jog, throwing my hands in front of myself and shoving the taller man hard in the back as I came up behind him. He stumbled forward, flailing, and I braced myself to dodge the first attack.

"Hey! What'd you do that for?" As the man turned, I was greeted with the sight of a jagged scar running along the length of his face, and over one eye. I could hardly believe my luck. He'd surely be furious with me. "That hurt my feelings."

Or maybe not. I stared in disbelief at the taller man. "Aren't you mad at me?"

I think maybe I took a knock to the head at some point and I'm hallucinating this entire escape plan. A hardened criminal such as this man appeared to be, one who readily confessed he would have been mad at me, but he was _learning to control his anger?!_

"Hey, you!"

The growl from behind caused me to spin about, alarmed. I saw another prisoner standing behind my son, one hand resting on his shoulder and an uncompromising look on his face. I was halfway back to them by the time the unknown man had revealed he wanted in on the second escape attempt. I had no trouble figuring out this was one of the other prisoners who had ruined the last escape attempt.

"Actually, we're trying to escape right now. But we need a riot." Sokka pointed at the man with a sly look on his face. "You wouldn't happen to know how to start one, would ya?"

I had to give him credit for knowing how to play to the man's ego. He brushed Sokka's arm out of the way and snorted.

"A prison riot? Please." He stalked past my son and grabbed some unfortunate by the front of his prison uniform, hoisting the man up over his head easily. He grabbed the attention of everyone in the yard with one easy shout, and then initiated the needed distraction with a simple word, bouncing his unfortunate victim one or twice as he did so.

"RIOT!"

Well, it got the riot started, but I was none to pleased that such a man was involved with this escape attempt. I'd met his like before. He might not be the worst of the criminals housed here, but his easy familiarity with starting violent fights marked him as a man who'd been in trouble often. Probably had started half of the fights he got into himself, if not more than that.

I'd have to watch him closely. If he showed any signs of betraying us to the warden or guards, I'd have no problem showing him that sheer brawn wasn't a guarantee for winning a fight. Water broke through rock all the time, after all, and never had to batter the stone to win.

The next five or ten minutes were occupied with avoiding getting pulled into the riot and finding a relatively sheltered spot to wait for our chance at the warden. Suki quickly told me the other prisoner's name was Chit-Sang, when I asked her in those breathless moments before we found a sheltered spot.

We had to wait for Prince Zuko, as well, who had still not shown up. I was starting to have suspicions about why he was conspicuously absent, but refrained from voicing them. I simply asked a carefully phrased question of my son.

"Where is Zuko, Sokka? Wasn't he supposed to be here, as well?" Sokka glanced at me, his face worried.

"The guards dragged him somewhere right after I finished telling him where to meet us. I don't know where they took him." His brow furrowed. "This could be a problem, if he can't get here on his own. I can't leave him behind."

Suki didn't look pleased by the fact we had to wait for the Fire Prince, but she seemed pleased Sokka wasn't going to leave a friend behind.

"We can't wait long, Sokka," she said gently. "Or we'll lose our chance."

"I know, but he's the reason I even knew where to come-"

"Sokka." I said firmly. He looked up to me. "Suki is right, but right now, no opportunity to take the warden captive is presenting itself. We still have to wait. Zuko has time to find us."

Not much, but it appeared to appease my son, who nodded and alternately scanned the rioting prisoners and the guards on the walkways, trying to divide his attention equally. It was perhaps only three or four minutes later, when I had just determined I'd have to talk my son into going ahead with our plan anyway, when the sounds of a scuffle broke out much nearer than the main body of fighting. I glanced to the side to see a young man my son's age, or very close to it, come running past me. His black hair was unbound and hanging in a messy pile around his face. I caught a glimpse of a scar over his left eye.

Well, looked like Prince Zuko had finally decided to join us. I looked back the way he had come and noticed a groaning guard struggling to get to his feet again, holding one arm as if it pained him.

Either this was a very elaborate ruse on the part of the Fire Nation, or the Fire Nation's prince really was on our side.

Just as I was about to deal with our unwelcome guest, Suki stepped forward and very carefully hit a certain pressure point on the guard's neck. He crumpled to the ground, out cold. I nodded my approval to Suki, who smiled grimly back at me.

"-thought you told me it was okay not to think everything through!" Sokka waved his arms around and his voice went just the slightest bit squeaky. I recognized the signs from when he was younger. He was starting to panic. The enormity of our task pressing in on him.

"Maybe not everything, but this is kind of important!" Zuko's palm met his forehead in a frustrated smack. Sokka looked worried and embarrassed. I felt a blur of motion past me, and blinked as I saw Suki running flat out at the rioting prisoners. Chit-Sang called both boys' attention to the running girl and I was completely astonished at what I saw.

Suki leaped up onto the back of one prisoner, using his shoulders as a sort of launching position, and ran lightly over the heads of the rioting mass. She reached the wall and practically scaled up it.

I had to forcibly remind myself that we had to be up there with Suki when she caught up with the warden.

"Come on!" I told the others. I started running, choosing to skirt around the majority of the fighting, and felt the others running to catch up.

Chit-Sang soon was passing me, his longer legs aiding him in moving faster. Sokka and Zuko were racing nearly neck and neck right behind me. Someone stumbled into our path, tripping Chit-Sang and causing me to stumble to avoid running over the man. I waved my son and the Fire Prince on.

"We're right behind you, just go!"

Chit-Sang was on his feet again in moments, taking the time to punch the man who'd tripped him into unconsciousness, I noted with unease. He took off running again and I followed close behind.

Or tried too. I felt myself grabbed from behind as a prisoner attempted to strangle me. I flailed, caught off balance and unable to get a good grip on my attacker. He wasn't very strong, and succeeded more in simply putting pressure on my windpipe than in cutting off my airflow, but I knew I was losing precious seconds. I had to get this man off and away from me.

Sokka hadn't noticed my predicament, I could see him running for the stairs still. I only hoped the others would not let him come back if I couldn't get to them in time. My son would not become a prisoner here, that I was determined to make true.

I tried several moves to dislodge my attacker, but he clung like a limpet. A stray bolt of fire went zipping by my head, and nearly singed my attacker, judging from his yelp and sudden absence from my back. I took my chance. Before the man could get up the nerve to attack again, I was running for the stairs. I noticed that Zuko was hanging back a little, as if waiting for me.

I took in his stance and his clenched right fist. A couple key facts clicked together in my mind, and left me reeling.

Prince Zuko was a firebender.

No stray blast could have so perfectly missed me and hit the man attacking me.

Sokka said he trusted Zuko. That he'd proven himself. I felt for the first time there might be something worth trusting in this young man. I nodded my thanks at him, and he gave a curt nod back, sprinting up the stairs and soon passing Chit-Sang. Apparently the other man didn't fare as well on stairs as he did on open ground. I caught up easily.

We all caught up with Suki just as she slammed the warden against the wall, gagged and bound with portions of his own uniform.

"We've got the warden, now let's get out of here!" She announced, grinning at us.

"That's some girl," I panted, impressed. Maybe Rajani didn't have any trace talent with earthbending, but I was sure Suki had to have some. There was no other way she could have scaled the walls like that.

"Tell me about it," Sokka sighed, before succumbing to his panting again.

I grinned.

--

Getting to the gondola proved even easier than I had dared to hope. Some token few guards had tried to stop us, but they had all stepped aside as we presented the warden as our hostage. As we gained the platform, however, we ran into slightly more persistent guards.

I saw the fire-blasts coming, but before I could even shout a warning, Zuko had leapt forward, pulling Sokka out of the way, and deflected both blasts. He stood up and turned side-on to the guards, declaring in a strong voice.

"Back off! We've got the warden." Chit-Sang didn't need prompting to turn and display the warden's face for easier recognition for the guards. They stepped to either side, clearing the path for us.

We passed between the guards cautiously, but none of them made a move to stop us. Zuko was the first to reach the loading area for the gondolas and he spun on his heel, taking up a defensive position as the rest of us darted past him to our waiting escape route.

It surprised me somewhat, but I was starting to see why my son trusted him. I wasn't ready to trust him completely, but his actions had laid to rest the fears I'd had of the Fire Nation prince being part of an elaborate plot to fool us.

As soon as we were in, Zuko sent the gondola on its way. I could see guards running towards us; presumably they hadn't figured out we had the warden hostage, or they didn't think want the warden to accuse them of not trying to stop the prisoners' escape if we failed. I thought the last scenario was more likely.

Zuko, however, wasn't paying much attention to the guards bearing down on him. He had noticed them, I was sure, as his shoulders were set in a tense line, but he made no move to join us in the gondola. If he didn't start for us soon, the gondola would be out of his reach.

I wondered why he was endangering himself like that – maybe he was having second thoughts about throwing his lot in with us? – but then he started kicking the lever that controlled the gondola's motion. I understood then. He was making sure no one could stop the gondola short of cutting the lines.

After the line broke, just as the guards got within fire-blasting range, Zuko took off running for the gondola. I saw the fierce concentration on his face as he leapt off the edge of the platform, blasts of fire rocketing over his head as he went. Sokka was already positioned at one of the windows, leaning out to catch hold of Zuko's hand.

I admit I felt some anxiety that Zuko had waited too long for his jump. The young man had done a lot for my son and me, and dying here would be poor reward for that. But I heard Sokka's grunt as he caught the Fire Prince and moments later Zuko had climbed into the gondola. I let Zuko explain what he'd been doing to my son by himself.

I was more interested in the new people who had joined the guards on the loading platform. There were two young women standing below us now, and the guards bowed referentially to them. I didn't like the look of the young girl in the red and black. If she was who I thought she was…

"Wait!" I cautioned my fellow escapees. "Who's that?" I only hoped I was wrong about who she was. I really hoped Zuko would not be the one to answer me.

"That's a problem," Zuko answered. I cursed in my head. "It's my sister and her friend."

Well, at least it didn't look like she had any easy way of getting to us, but I didn't harbor any hopes that she'd let us go so easily.

Both girls exploded into motion then, the one in pink leaping up onto the guiding ropes of the gondola and running along them like some insane acrobat and the Fire Princess grabbed what seemed to be a pair of shackles from a nearby guard, using her bending to propel herself up towards the ropes and attaching one end of the shackles. I was confused until she started once again propelling herself with her odd blue fire.

"This is a rematch I've been waiting for," Suki declared coldly. I glanced back to find her glaring at the approaching girls with venom in her gaze. There was most definitely a history between them, but I didn't know what it was, and I was side-tracked from figuring it out by Zuko's comment.

"Me too." He proceeded to pull himself out of the gondola and onto the roof, completely ignoring the shocked look Suki had sent his way, and missing mine as well. Sokka tapped Suki lightly on the arm and jerked his head up and they followed Zuko out onto the roof. I had to forcibly stop myself from following them. I had no weapon and I certainly could not protect myself from Princess Azula's bending.

It was ironic, how much of this escape was coming to depend on Prince Zuko. I'd have to trust him to protect my son up on that roof, and even more surprising, I was coming to trust him.

What had happened to my certainty that the entire Fire Nation Royal Family was not to be trusted? That they were all arrogant, cruel people?

Two light thumps announced the arrival of Princess Azula and her friend, interrupting my thoughts. All I could do now was listen to the battle commencing over my head, wincing whenever some of that blue fire appeared low enough for me to see it. I took some comfort in the face that the orange fire accompanying it meant Zuko was deflecting the attacks made by his sister.

It wasn't very long into the fight that the girl in pink flipped through the cabin of the gondola. I managed to catch a glimpse of her face. She had looked ever so slightly frustrated. I grinned. From the sounds above me, I judged that Sokka and Zuko were facing Princess Azula, so Suki had been the one to knock this girl off the roof.

However, soon hearing only the sounds of the battle and not being able to see any of it wore through my patience. I stood at one of the side windows, trying vainly to see up above, to catch some glimpse of what was going on. I could only hope that Sokka and Zuko were able to read each other well enough to fight effectively. I could see none of their battle, only the stray blasts of fire that fell from the roof, only to dissipate in the air. Fighting with a partner was tricky business, especially when you did not know your partner very well. You had to anticipate not only the moves of your opponent, but the moves of your partner as well, to avoid tangling each other up and providing opportunities to strike for your opponent.

So the question became, how well did Zuko know my son? And how well did Sokka know him?

"Cut the line!"

I spun, a spurt of panic running through me as I realized I had forgotten that the warden was in the gondola with me. I had forgotten about Chit-Sang too, as he also turned a surprised look on the warden. The man had freed himself of his restraints and was shouting orders to the guards below.

Orders that would doom all of us. We were only just slightly over halfway to the other side of the lake. If we went down now, all of us would die.

I found myself not minding in the slightest the rough handling the warden endured as Chit-Sang and I tied him up again. I didn't even try to be gentle. This man had just condemned all of us.

He had condemned Sokka. And for that, I could never forgive him.

I turned from the warden, not willing to let the man see my despair. I stood facing the window that viewed the prison, trying vainly to find a way to stop the guards from cutting the line, when they were out of my reach.

But it was a hopeless endeavor. We could do nothing from here. As soon as the lines gave, the gondola would plummet to the boiling lake below. I'd forgotten that we had three enemies to deal with.

I was as guilty as the warden for our deaths. My gut churned; for my son's death.

_Kya, I'm so sorry. I promised I'd protect them, and instead, I've led our son to his death. I've ensured Katara will lose both of us at once. _

A thump behind me, and a voice stating what I already knew announced Zuko's reentrance into the gondola's cabin.

"I hope this thing floats," I quipped weakly. Two more thumps meant Sokka and Suki had rejoined us as well.

"What do we do?" Suki asked, her voice worried.

"How can we stop them from here?" Sokka demanded of everyone in the cabin. He didn't sound very hopeful.

I turned back to view the guards bringing our deaths ever closer. I couldn't bear to watch my son right now.

And that was why I saw the young woman come up before the guards and send them flying back from the lines, pinned to the wall behind them with something that I thought might be stilettos.

She didn't appear to be a bender, but she certainly didn't need bending to overpower the guards. In perhaps just under a minute, all the guards had been neutralized and the unknown young woman had gotten rid of the large metal bars halting our gondola's progress towards freedom.

"Who is that?!" Sokka asked, leaning out the window. It was a good question, and one I wanted an answer to as well. We owed that young woman our lives. The guards wouldn't be able to stop us before we reached the other side of the lake now.

Zuko provided the answer, his shock clear in both his voice and his body language. He shook his head, as if he thought he was seeing things. "It's Mai!"

"You're girlfriend?!" my son exclaimed, causing Suki to do a double take to the girl back at the prison. Zuko didn't seem to take offense at the shock in Sokka's voice. He nodded, still dumbstruck.

"Yeah…" I watched as Zuko's head turned in the direction of his sister and her friend on the other gondola, then back to Mai. "She said I was betraying my nation…Why would she…I thought she hated me…"

I sympathized with his confusion. If she had thought Zuko had betrayed his nation, their nation, than it was certainly confusing why she was now helping us. I thought again about the glance he had sent towards his sister and felt myself suddenly worried for this girl I had never met.

The gondola had nearly reached its destination by now. "We have to go." I reminded everyone. Sokka shook his head, and forced himself to figure out what we had to do now.

"Right," he said as the gondola came to a stop. "Let's go." I looked to the Fire Nation Prince, as Suki ran past us and out of the gondola. Sokka placed a hand on Zuko's shoulder, bringing the other boy back to the present. Zuko's expression was pained, but he followed Sokka out of the gondola.

I went next, and Chit-Sang followed with the warden. I stopped. The warden was not going to come with us. At this point, I didn't care if he did know of a way we could finish our escape. He had nearly succeeded in sending my son to his death.

I shook my head at Chit-Sang and pointed firmly back into the gondola. Chit-Sang shrugged and threw the warden back in. I hid a smug grin as I heard the warden's landing. That must have been painful. Served him right.

"Sorry, Warden," I said, smirking in at the bound and gagged man. My voice was anything but sorry. "Your record is officially broken." I strolled away calmly, just to hear the warden's furious mumbling through his gag.

The satisfaction I took from that didn't last very long, though. We had reached the beginning of a path that wound down cliff towards the sea, but I didn't see any obvious way to get away from the island.

"Zuko! What are you doing?"

I turned back to see Zuko standing at the back of our little group, staring back the way we had come with an odd look on his face. He turned to face my son.

"My sister was on that island."

What did that have to do with anything? Sokka apparently shared my opinion, though he seemed more wary that the Fire Princess was close behind us.

"What I mean is she must have come here somehow," Zuko explained. I felt my hopes beginning to lift. He was right. Princess Azula had to have had transportation to get here. Zuko ran past me, at a slight angle to where we had been going. We followed him. "There! That's our way out of here." He declared, pointing down at an airship secured to a dock down at the foot of the cliff.

Now we just had to get there.

--

We spent fifteen nerve-racking minutes getting down the cliff. None of us escaped a few scrapes and bruises, and all of us had at least one slip on our way to the airship. But we got to the airship without suffering broken bones, for which I was thankful.

I was slightly surprised to find that no guards had been left with the airship. The only person we encountered was the helmsman, who had been left to watch the ship. I supposed no one really expected any escape attempts to get this far, so the majority of the Princess's escort had gone with her to the prison, where the more likely danger lay.

Whatever the reason, it meant we had only one person to kick off the gondola, and he practically threw himself off, so anxious was he to get out of our way.

"How do we get this thing in the air?" Suki asked. Zuko was already moving.

"Sokka, do you know how to work the controls?"

"Yeah, it's not that difficult."

"Good. Chit-Sang and I will get the engine going."

He disappeared down the corridor, Chit-Sang following after a moment. I hid a grin. It was obvious Zuko was used to people following his orders, and that air of expected obedience didn't leave a person just because their situation had changed.

We were underway in less than five minutes, and Chit-Sang and Zuko rejoined us. I breathed a sigh of relief.

We actually did it. We escaped from the Boiling Rock.


	6. The Man Behind the Convict

A/N: I would advise against eating or drinking during this chapter, due to disturbing imagery in the latter part of the chapter. Especially if you have a vivid imagination, as I do...Just a forewarning; don't want people yelling at me about it later. You were warned!

--

"It's the other way, Sokka."

"No, it's this way."

"Sokka, I grew up in the Fire Nation, remember? I think I know the geography a little better than you do."

"Look, just because you were-"

"See that island?"

"Huh? What island?" Sokka glanced down through the forward window and waved a dismissive hand. "Yes, yes, very nice, Zuko. You can identify islands. Good to know that princely training was of _some _use. Now-"

"We passed it on our way to the Boiling Rock. We used it as a marker, remember?" Zuko hadn't let up on his unrelenting stare at my son. I was starting to find this argument rather amusing. We'd been flying for a little over an hour when both Sokka and Zuko had agreed they needed to make a turn to put us in line with the Western Air Temple. Only they disagreed on which way they were supposed to turn.

Maybe this should worry me more, that the only two who knew how to get us the rest of the way to safety were having differences of opinion on the directions, but it didn't. Their argument was amusing me too much. Sokka was acting his age now that the danger had passed, for the most part, and was throwing snide comments and remarks at Zuko as they bickered over directions. It was doing me good to see him act like a child, even if it would only be for a short time.

"So what?"

"So which direction did we turn in to put us in line for the Boiling Rock?"

"West, but I still don't see what-"

"So to go back the way we came we have to turn…"

"…North," Sokka grumbled, scowling down at the island, which was receding towards the north, then over at Zuko's superior smirk. "Shut up," my son growled as he spun the wheel to turn the airship the appropriate direction.

"I've gotten the impression they do this often," a soft voice remarked at my side. I glanced down and to the right, to find Suki leaning against the wall next to me. I laughed a little in agreement.

"Oh?" I invited her to share more with that syllable alone. She smiled up at me, blue-gray eyes twinkling.

"They did something similar during our first escape attempt. I didn't hear all of the argument, but they were ribbing each other about it earlier." She shook her head a little. "All I figured out is that it had something to do with how they got the cooler out of the prison without anyone noticing."

I blinked. I hadn't thought of that. How had they gotten a cooler down to the lake without someone noticing them? My glance slid over to the two teenage boys, Sokka still grumbling and Zuko leaning smugly against the controls just out of range of any retaliation Sokka might try. I'd have to ask how they accomplished it.

"It's a little hard to believe," I mused, mostly to myself. "Of all the people to turn traitor, why him?"

"I don't know. I'd never have believed it either."

I started a little. I hadn't meant to have that overheard. Suki was looking thoughtfully at the Fire Prince, who was now snickering as he rebuffed every attempt my son made at trying to prove that the Fire Nation prince didn't know geography as well as my son did.

"He burned my village down, chasing the Avatar," she said quietly. I sighed, sympathizing with her residual anger.

"He rammed his warship into the ice shelf my tribe was living on. They had to relocate after he left," I shared with her. Suki sighed.

"It makes you wonder, doesn't it? What made him change?"

Yes, it did make me wonder. Suki wandered over to the controls, planting herself firmly in between the two boys, interrupting their contest. She turned a mock stern glance on my son.

"Can you drop the macho act for a second, Sokka? I want to hear what the Western Air Temple is like." Her glance slid to the side to include Zuko. "Both of you. Tell me what it's like."

This sparked a conversation that would no doubt last most of the rest of our trip. I couldn't deny I wanted to hear about the temple as well, but I had other concerns for the moment.

Much as I might want answers to the mystery that was Zuko, I knew where he stood. He'd more than proven himself to me, just as he had to my son. It was only my curiosity and residual protective feelings making me want to question him now.

It was far more important to figure out where Chit-Sang stood in all of this. The others were occupied, and would be for a while. This was the only chance I'd get before we arrived to speak with the convict in private.

I moved over to where Chit-Sang was sitting in one of the duty station seats scattered around the bridge. He was staring contemplatively at the floor. It wasn't an expression I was used to from him. I hadn't seen him think much of anything through, since I had met the man.

"Chit-Sang," I said firmly, to gain his attention. He looked up, his eyes showing a hard-won wisdom.

"I figured you'd be cornering me for a few _words,_ Hakoda," he returned. I smirked the slightest bit.

"I didn't corner you, Chit-Sang. If you haven't noticed, the closest corner is by the doorway to the rest of the airship."

Chit-Sang's right eye twitched, and his fingers made small, jerky movements, as if they wanted to form fists. He controlled himself, though, which was more than I'd been expecting when I'd loosed the barb.

"I can see where your son got the smart mouth," he retorted. I granted him the point with a small nod of my head. My entire expression was serious, however, as I made a point of my own.

"Sokka is still learning to be a warrior. However well he's done in the past year, there are still things he needs to learn. Things I have learned already." My eyes glinted at the seated man. "Like how to effectively put a firebender out of commission even without a weapon, or bending ability."

I let that knowledge sink in before I leaned casually against a seat a few down from the Fire Nation man, feeling rather pleased that Chit-Sang was following my every move warily.

"What do you want?" He asked me, his voice gruff. I didn't look directly at him to start.

"Not much." From my tone of voice, one would think I merely discussed the latest whale hunt. It was a trick my mother used often to put unruly youngsters off guard. She'd turned it on full grown men a couple times even. Bato and I had discovered it was just as terrifying now we were adults and warriors as it had been when we were children stealing a few extra sweets from my mother's hearth fire.

Apparently it worked cross-culturally as well, since Chit-Sang shifted in his seat again, his nervousness apparent despite his attempts to mask it behind a gruff exterior. I turned my head to stare him dead in the face.

"I want to know what your intentions are, once we reach our destination." I knew he read what I did not say from my expression. _You are either an ally, or you are an enemy. Choose, and choose wisely._

Chit-Sang couldn't hold my gaze; he glanced down, brow furrowing. I waited, outwardly as calm as if nothing of great importance was occurring. Inside, I was tense. It had been true, what I had insinuated to Chit-Sang earlier. I knew how to take firebenders down without any bending abilities or any weapons but my own fists. But it depended largely on my own speed versus that of my opponent. I'd get only the one chance, and if he deflected my blow…

Well, I could not imagine a fight within the confines of this airship that would end well.

"I'm not a good man," Chit-Sang announced suddenly. He sneered the slightest bit. "By your standards, anyway. I've got my own measure of what makes a man good." He huffed, just shy of a snort. "But havin' a personal code of honor don't matter nothin' to the elite. Us low born are just trash to be stepped on and thrown out." He glared at the floor, fists clenching. "We're just fodder for the war, so the nobles don't have to send their own sons to fight and die against the Earth Kingdom."

Well, I had wanted him to explain himself to me. Apparently I was going to get a full explanation. Had I rattled him that much, or was it just that he now had someone to tell his frustrations too, so he was letting it out?

I had no way of knowing, so I just settled myself more comfortably and listened.

"You think you're the only one who's had to suffer for this war? That the Water Tribes and the Earth Kingdom are the only victims?" He glared up at me now. I kept my face neutral. "You're wrong about that. Every moment of every day, you have to watch your mouth in the Fire Nation. The war is destiny, we're taught, it's the Fire Nation's right to conquer the world. We achieved cultural superiority and it's only fair we share it with the world. If the rest of the world chooses to refuse to advance themselves, then we must show them their error, through force if necessary."

I was mildly stunned. They thought conquering the entire world was their destiny? That was insane! But it did explain the almost fanatic nature of the soldiers I had come into close personal contact with. The ones we'd captured while my warriors and I had harried Fire Nation patrols off the Earth Kingdom's southern coast, especially. They'd been so sure nothing we 'backwards barbarians' could do would stop the Fire Nation's advance. It was only a matter of time, they'd proclaimed.

Now I knew why. If they were force fed this type of idiocy, no wonder so many of them behaved as they did.

"And if you disagree?" Chit-Sang continued, unaware of my silent commentary. "Well, you're a sympathizer and a traitor then. No matter how much your family has given for the war. You can't be the slightest bit jaded by it. Especially if you ain't got no rank. Peasants are just supposed to do as they're told and believe what the nobles tell us to. No free thinkin' at all. Oh no," the sneer was back, but I could detect pain hiding behind his eyes. "Not in the Fire Nation. It's the nobles' way or nothin'."

I let him fall silent for a while. I could think of nothing to say that wasn't trite, and I wasn't inclined to force the man to continue. He'd shared far more than I'd expected him too, and the brief glimpse I was getting into his past was showing me a man who very much just wanted this war to end. The insights were vague and murky, yes. Phrases and choices of words that set off warning bells in my mind of a man taxed beyond the breaking point.

"I'm not on your side, Hakoda," he told me, his eyes fixed on a point somewhere in front of his seat. "But, by Agni's sweet light, I'm never gonna do anythin' for the Fire Nation ever again." He turned his eyes to mine. I met his gaze squarely. I didn't like him, but I could respect him. "But your son's the only reason I got outta that prison." His glance slid over to Sokka, who was gesticulating wildly as he made a point to Suki. "I'll honor that. You don't have to worry about his safety with me around."

I noted that could be taken a few different ways, but I chose to not press the issue. I still didn't like the man, but I had a better idea of the events that had shaped him to be the man he was now. He wouldn't fight for us, but he'd not aid the Fire Nation either.

It was good enough for me. I pushed off my perch, stretching sore muscles.

"I hope we get there soon," I remarked, ignoring the startled glance that shot my way. "I'm tired." A fond smile crossed my face. "And I can't wait to see my daughter again."

"You have a daughter?" The question seemed to come out of its own volition, because Chit-Sang colored slightly and turned away from me. I ignored his reaction and answered the question.

"Her name is Katara." I glanced at the former convict from the corner of my eye. He wore the strangest look… "Do you have any children?" I found myself asking before I could stop myself. Chit-Sang stiffened, as if offended, and I cursed my own idiocy in asking such a personal question. It was one thing to press him for an answer on his position in this war, quite another to ask un-related personal questions. "You don't…I mean-"

"She would have been sixteen today," he said quietly. I stopped speaking, more because my brain was trying to draw the connection between this rough man and the image of a father than anything else. "She never saw her seventh birthday."

I felt my stomach churn at the simple sentence. I couldn't ask the question, but Chit-Sang continued without even looking at me.

"I was in town, getting supplies to repair our home. They were off duty soldiers, noblemen's sons. Her mother tried to protect her. By the time I got back, my home had been burned to the ground. With my wife and child inside." His mouth curled into an angry grimace. "I was told I should have expected it to happen, since I didn't support the war effort and was obviously a sympathizer."

I could feel my fists clenching by my sides. I barely managed to get my words out, but that revelation deserved some reciprocation and acknowledgement.

"I had to watch my people be systematically worn down. Attack after attack, until all of our waterbenders were captured or killed. The Southern Water Tribe used to be almost as big as our Northern cousins. The Fire Nation battered away at us until we were reduced to a broken remnant of what we had once been." I had to choke the next words out. "In their last attack, they killed my wife. I wasn't there to protect her. I didn't move quickly enough." My head bowed with remembered rage and grief.

We were both silent for a long moment, gathering our composure again. When we next met each other's eyes, there was astonishment for the revelations shared, and a kind of grudging respect showing clearly in Chit-Sang's gaze.

I knew my own held the same emotions.

We would never be comrades in arms, despite the similarities between the trials we had suffered at Fire Nation hands, but we could understand each other.

_Well, Hakoda, _I told myself wryly, as Chit-Sang stood to go look out the forward window. _How many times did Mother tell you not to ask a question unless you were prepared to hear the answer? You never learn, do you?_

--

A/N2: My only explanation for where this look into Chit-Sang's past came from is...well...I don't have a reason, expect that I really couldn't see Chit-Sang as some sort of murdering megalomaniac or something like that. He's a rough man, used to violent fights, definitely self-centered, but I never got the impression from his (admittedly small) screentime that he was a seriously dangerous criminal. So I started to think about what would make him the way he is, and a comment made by a guard at the very end of TBR Part 1 about sympathizers, sand out came the above. And the fact that Hakoda wasn't about to let a potential enemy anywhere near his daughter if he could help it. He didn't much like Chit-Sang being near _Sokka_, if the look Hakoda levels at Chit-Sang right before the riot was any indication, but he didn't have a choice in that one.

*grin* I do so love picking apart expressions and finding the reasonings behind them...

Tell me what you guys think!


	7. Satisfying Curiosity

A/N: This is the last chapter guys. I hope you enjoy.

--

I had a hard time containing my excitement as Sokka lowered the airship to a resting position at one point on the Western Air Temple. At this point, we couldn't move fast enough for me.

I wanted to see Katara again. I wanted to hold her close and reassure myself she had taken no harm from the failed invasion. I wanted to let her see that this war wasn't going to be taking her father from her again. I was still here and I wasn't planning on leaving anytime soon.

But Sokka was so excited for this reunion to be a surprise. He wanted to surprise everyone in the camp, not just Katara. So I'd curb my impatience for a few extra seconds and let him have his moment.

I stayed out of sight with Chit-Sang and Suki as my son and Zuko disembarked and Sokka preceded to explain where they had been. I smiled fondly as I heard him describe the 'meat' he and Zuko had brought back.

As Bato might have said, "He's definitely _your_ son, Hakoda."

But that didn't matter now, because I was walking off the airship and smiling into my daughter's astonished and joyful eyes.

"Hi, Katara."

--

I looked up, vaguely curious, as I saw Zuko leave the fire where we had all gathered to share the story of the escape from the Boiling Rock, simply telling Toph that he wanted to be wearing his _own_ clothes, since he'd lost the ones he'd worn to the prison, and Sokka jerked as he looked down at his own clothing in surprise. He got up too and left after Zuko, muttering about something to do with the Fire Nation and proper clothing. I just smiled. I'd wondered when he would realize he still wore the guard's uniform, but I'd been more interested in other things as my son and the Fire Prince shared the story of our escape, with occasional aide from Suki and Chit-Sang.

I confess, I hadn't paid much attention to the story. I already knew what had happened, and I was far too preoccupied drinking in the sight of my children, safe and sound here in the Western Air Temple.

But the story had been shared, Zuko had been coaxed into revealing what had happened in between being dragged away by the guards and joining the rest of us in the prison yard, and all the others had satisfied their curiosity about all aspects of the escape.

But now, I had some of my own curiosity to satisfy. I let Zuko get ahead of me by a few minutes and then stood, smiling down at my daughter, who looked up as I left her side.

"I'm just going to stretch my legs a bit, Katara. I'll be back."

"Alright, Dad," she replied, smiling slightly, though worry danced behind her gaze. I knew what most likely caused that look. Shaking my head, I bent down so I could look her in the eye.

"Katara, I don't regret the choice I made after the invasion. It was worth it so you and your brother could escape." I cupped her face in my hands, smiling. "I know you hated not being able to do anything about it, but it's over now." I tapped her nose as I often had when she was little and grinned. "Call it a father's privilege, to take the danger for his children."

"Dad…" Katara's eyes were conflicted and I just shook my head.

"You are your mother's daughter," I sighed. She smiled slightly, a little sad. I matched her expression. Thinking of Kya still hurt, but I would never give up my memories of her. "Katara, please trust me. I won't let this war tear our family apart any more than it already has."

My daughter's expression flicked through several emotions too fast for me to read them, and then she nodded slightly.

"Alright, Dad. I'll trust you."

"That's all I ask, little avalanche," I said, my voice lightly teasing. Katara blinked, caught off guard by my use of the name I'd first started using for her not long after we discovered she was a waterbender. The incident was still fresh in my mind; a four year old Katara throwing a fit because her older brother would not give her favorite doll back. She had stomped her feet and screamed, and half of our igloo had come down around us. A miniature avalanche.

Katara giggled. "I think I have more control than that, now, Dad," she managed. I smiled.

"Of course you do. I imagine you could create a much more devastating avalanche than the one that took half our igloo apart."

She giggled again, and I left her with a smile on my own face. I would still have to spend time getting to know these two young adults my children had become, but it was good to know I could still read their emotions accurately.

But now I had a problem. Where exactly had Zuko gone? I peered around and picked a path at random, looking carefully for any signs of recent passage.

I was just about to give up my search and go back to the fire and the others when I saw a light dancing ahead of me. I grinned in triumph. There weren't any torches in the temple, so the only way there would be a light out here, away from the main fire, was if a bender had lit it.

I'd found Zuko.

I turned the corner and my eyes zeroed in on the flame dancing in the doorway to a small room. I saw Zuko inside, replacing something in a travel bag. He'd changed out of the prison uniform and was wearing more casual clothing.

I stopped just outside the doorway, and cleared my throat. Zuko jumped, spinning around. His golden eyes were wide with shock and confusion as they settled on me, but those emotions were quickly replaced by a sort of resignation I wasn't sure I understood.

"Can I come in?" I asked lightly, trying to put him more at ease. I didn't want him to feel threatened, but I did want some answers. "I'd like to talk."

"Um…uh, sure," he paused, and I merely raised an eyebrow, tilting my head in the direction of his dancing light, and the Fire Prince flushed. A wave of the hand moved the flame out of my way and to a corner of the room. I came in and sat on the bed.

And suddenly, I wasn't sure how to start this conversation. Zuko shifted as I regarded him steadily and I sighed in annoyance with myself. I was making him nervous already.

Well, I could start there…

"I'm not trying to make you nervous, Zuko," I said softly. He stared at me. "I'm just not quite sure what to make of you." I smiled. "You're quite the puzzle for such a young man."

"Well…I…" Apparently Zuko didn't know what to make of me either, since he gave up trying to respond and simply sat warily on the bed a few feet from me. But now that I had started, I felt more comfortable. I could make this conversation work.

"I'm not even questioning your apparent change of heart." Zuko flinched the slightest bit. I wondered just what reactions he had gotten when he first joined my children and the Avatar to inspire that. Probably nothing good, from what I knew had transpired between them before. "You did more than enough during our escape to convince me of your sincerity. Though, if you don't mind, I'd like to know why you did switch sides. Why are you helping the Avatar?"

"I don't see it as switching sides," he said after a few moments of silence. He was forcing himself to meet my gaze, I knew, but his eyes were steady and confident in his decision. "I've always been loyal to my nation. It just took a long time for me to see the best way to help the Fire Nation, was to help the Avatar end this war."

Zuko's eyes slid from mine, eyes clouded. "I know I made a lot of mistakes in the past. And my family has done nothing but terrorize the other nations. People hate the Fire Nation." I watched as his eyes slid closed, and his fists clenched. "It took betraying my uncle and getting my face shoved in the fact of how fickle my father's affections are, how dependent his approval is on how I act, to show me how wrong it was."

I wasn't sure if Zuko was talking about the war anymore. But then, he had only gotten involved in chasing the Avatar to gain back his father's approval, so for him, his personal relationships were an integral part of the war. He probably _couldn't _separate the two.

Zuko stood suddenly, pacing away from me and back, before looking at me again. I met his gaze calmly, letting him see I wasn't judging him for his words or his past actions.

I imagine he'd had enough people just react to who he had been, instead of who he was now, that he wasn't familiar with how to react to the latter.

"So how does helping the Avatar help your nation?" I asked, before he could speak. My voice was friendly and calm, and Zuko just stared at me for a moment.

"I don't know," he replied after a few seconds of silence. He shook his head. "But my father has to be stopped. Uncle can take the throne back, it was supposed to be his after Grandfather died, anyway." Zuko shrugged and turned to look out the single window in the room. "But I know it's my destiny to help Aang. It just took me a long time to realize it."

"But you know now, and you're doing it," I remarked quietly. Zuko only shrugged again.

"I didn't figure it out soon enough," he remarked bitterly. A phrase I had noted in passing, but not thought much of at the time, floated through my thoughts. _"Betraying my uncle…"_

Ah, so he wasn't just dealing with lingering hostility from his new companions. I wasn't blind. I hadn't missed the looks Zuko had received from my daughter at certain points during the story of our escape. He was dealing with his own guilt as well.

"May I ask you a question, Chief Hakoda?" Zuko asked without turning around. I felt a slight smile tug my mouth. I found it slightly amusing, the insistence of the Fire Nation in assigning a status and title to everyone they met. We weren't nearly so uptight about status in my tribe.

"Hakoda is fine, Zuko. And go ahead."

"…why…" I saw him steel himself and turn around. "You've got as much reason to mistrust me as the others. Why haven't you…?" He didn't seem to know how to finish the question.

"Why am I not acting hostile towards you?" I cocked my head. "Like everyone else did at first? And maybe still are?"

I watched as he flushed again, but he wouldn't look away. I sighed and shook my head. "I'm not going to lie to you, Zuko. I wasn't happy to hear Sokka tell me you were at the Boiling Rock. I didn't think anything good could come of it, and frankly, I was honestly wondering just what you had done to fool him into trusting you."

Zuko couldn't hide his flinch, but I continued without paying it any attention.

"We didn't have time to come up with an escape plan and still have Sokka explain exactly why he trusted you. I gave you the benefit of the doubt." I paused, but Zuko had been honest with me, so I could hardly do less. I felt my mouth curve into a crooked grin. "But that didn't mean I wasn't suspicious, and when you were late meeting us in the prison yard…" I shrugged, knowing Zuko wouldn't have problems seeing what I had thought at that point. I laughed a bit, causing Zuko to stare at me in confusion.

"And then you helped me out during our run through the riot, you stood rear guard when we got on the gondola, just about got yourself killed jumping to the gondola to make sure the only way the guards could stop us was by cutting the lines…" I shrugged. "I can go on, but suffice it to say you managed to upend all of my expectations about the Fire Nation and every single one I had about you, especially."

Zuko was completely astonished. I stood, and clapped him on the shoulder. "People change, Zuko. I know that. I won't tell you I wasn't mad when I heard what you did to my tribe," my hand tightened slightly on his shoulder, and Zuko suddenly couldn't meet my gaze. "But I also know that wars make people do things they'd never consider otherwise. My children haven't learned that lesson yet, despite how many things they've done they wouldn't have otherwise."

I paused and waited until Zuko met my gaze again. I smiled encouragingly.

"Maybe it's one you need to learn as well."

With that, I turned and walked out of the room, back to my daughter and son.

--

It was perhaps ten minutes after I had rejoined my daughter at the campfire that Zuko reappeared, calmly and unobtrusively taking his seat once again. I saw Toph lean around the Mechanist's son and inquire about what took so long about changing his clothes.

"I was stuck in a cell for most of the day, Toph." Zuko replied, one eyebrow arching high. "And we didn't exactly have time for much of anything but escaping once the riot started."

Toph opened her mouth to retort, and then stopped as Zuko's implication hit home. She blinked, and then nodded curtly, thumping back down to her own seat. I saw the Mechanist's son snicker lightly, and get punched in the shoulder by the younger girl. Zuko ignored their antics.

I smiled as I turned my attention back to my children. Sokka had returned just a few minutes before Zuko had, and he'd almost immediately started complaining he was still hungry and wasn't there anything to eat besides _fruit? _

"Don't we have _any _meat?!"

"Sokka! We're in an Air Nomad temple! Of course there's no meat!"

"But I _need _some meat, Katara! Come on, don't we have anything besides fruit and…and weeds?"

"They're roots, not weeds and they're good for you!"

I leaned back on my hands, feeling content for the first time in a long while. I let my children's argument wash over me, soothing away the tension of the past week and a half and simply enjoyed the peace.

I would have to start thinking of the war again soon, to plan my next move and to help my children do the same, but for now, I was more than willing to sit here and let the calm breeze play over my face.

The war could wait for one night.

--

A/N2: And of course, that last thought of Hakoda's is literal in more than one way...though he doesn't know that! *grin* Thank all of you for reading my fic, and please take a few moments to tell me what you think of this last chapter!


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